But that didn’t stop Abdullah from texting the Bulldogs linebacker this week after arriving in town in hopes of catching up with him.

They played together two years ago in the Offense-Defense All-American Bowl in Myrtle Beach, S.C.

Abdullah, who leads Nebraska with 1,089 rushing yards and eight touchdowns this year as a sophomore, played cornerback and had two interceptions in the game.

“He didn’t know where he was going then,” Herrera said. “He was a good DB. I just knew him at DB. He made big plays at DB. I didn’t know he could play offense.”

The 5-foot-9, 185-pound Abdullah, from Homewood, Ala., was viewed by most schools at a cornerback because of his size.

“Nebraska recruited me for the position I wanted to play, which is running back,” he said. “They were the best fit for me.”

He had a brother who played in-state at Auburn and he said the Tigers liked him as a cornerback. Auburn and Alabama didn’t offer him until late in the recruiting process.

He said he knows fans in Alabama are passionate about the Crimson Tide and Tigers, but said Cornhusker fans may be more excited about their team.

He points to 50 consecutive years of sellouts at Memorial Stadium.

“That’s a testament of what these fans bring to our program,” he said.

He’s watched film of Alabama rushing for 350 yards against Georgia in the SEC title game.

“They’re susceptible to the run, but I know they can also stop the run,” Abdullah said. “We can’t go in thinking they let a lot of yards rushed on them on the ground. We can’t just think we’re going to walk in and run the ball on them. We’ve got to come off the ball and get good push from our o-line. We’ve got to run hard and finish our runs.”

Herrera and his Georgia teammates will be trying to stop Abdullah and senior Rex Burkhead, who was limited to seven games this season with a knee injury.

“He’s a really big kid, he’s good,” Abdullah said of Herrera. “He’s grown a lot since I’ve seen him. It’s going to be fun playing against some people back from the South, people you knew in high school.”

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